Truly modern: Cocktails, couches, street art, meatballs

On a wet night in an abandoned ink factory, west Berkeley turned into Brooklyn for a few hours, or maybe New York City’s Meatpacking district, with a gathering that included a canvas of wall-to-wall graffiti, cool couches, cocktail waitresses and scrumptious meatballs.

The event was the brainchild of Edgar Blazona, owner of True Modern, the contemporary furniture store at 1659 San Pablo Avenue.

Blazona had set up a photo shoot in the old Ink Flint factory at 1350 Fourth Street, which was recently host to Endless Canvas‘s Special Delivery Bay Area 2012 Mural Exhibit. And he figured that after all the effort of orchestrating the shoot — which included hauling furniture into the vast building, pumping out the lakes of water that had pooled there as a result of torrential rains, and lighting up the warehouse’s cavernous nooks and crannies — he might as well round off the work with a party.

Guests at the guerilla cocktail party were given flash-lights, along with gin and tonics, and encouraged to explore three stories of what Endless Canvas described as the “post apocalyptic museum.” The contrast between the pristine Modernist furniture and the swirling art, accompanied by a soundtrack which blended gushing water, train horns and DJ-spun tunes, was something to behold.

“What I thought was going to be a simple furniture shoot turned into one of the most gorgeous things I’ve ever seen,” wrote Endless Canvas on its website.

Guests to the Modernism For Life party were encouraged to explore three stories of street art with flashlights. Photo: Endless Canvas